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Keogh plans are a type of retirement plan for self-employed people and small businesses in the United States. [1]
| | This article needs additional citations for verification .(February 2021) |
Keogh plans are a type of retirement plan for self-employed people and small businesses in the United States. [1]
Named for U.S. Representative Eugene James Keogh of New York, they are sometimes called HR10 plans. IRS Publication 560 refers to them as "Qualified Plans". They are different from individual retirement accounts (IRAs).
There are two basic types of Keogh plan: defined-benefit, and defined-contribution.
In a defined-contribution plan, a fixed contribution (percentage of total paycheck or a fixed sum) is made per pay period. It may be set up as a profit-sharing plan, where the pension that one can withdraw after retirement depends on how much they invested in the plan while they worked.
The defined-benefits plan is more complex. It relies on an IRS formula to calculate the rate of contributions.
In either case, as in other retirement plans such as 401(k)s and IRAs, the funds in the plan can be invested in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc. [2]
The main benefit of a Keogh plan versus other retirement plans is that a Keogh plan has higher contribution limits for some individuals. For 2011, employees can generally contribute up to $16,500 per year, and the employer can contribute up to $32,500, for a total annual contribution of $49,000. The total contribution cap is $50,000 for 2012, $51,000 for 2013, $52,000 for 2014, and up to 25% of compensation or $53,000 in 2016, whichever is lower. [2] [3]
A person with a Keogh plan can also contribute to an IRA (traditional or Roth).
Keogh plans are not as common as most other retirement plans because there are several limitations to Keogh plans.
Compared to other retirement plans (traditional IRA, SIMPLE IRA, etc.), Keogh plans require more administrative paperwork. While most small business owners can manage to set up other plans themselves, a Keogh plan requires complex calculations and professional help to establish. They've been largely replaced by SEP IRAs, which have the same contribution limits but much less paperwork. [4]
Keogh plans cannot be established by an employee. Keogh plans are applicable to self-employed individuals who own their own unincorporated business (sole proprietorships, partnerships and LLCs).
All contributions must be made "pre-tax", meaning that the contributions can be deducted from this year's tax, but taxes must be paid on the money when it is withdrawn during retirement. There is no such thing as a "Roth Keogh plan".
Penalties may apply for making withdrawals from a Keogh plan before the account holder turns 59½.
The main benefit of a Keogh plan versus other plans (Keogh's high contribution limit) is lost in individuals who do not make a high level of income. These individuals may get the same benefits of a Keogh plan with less administrative cost by using another type of retirement plan (401(k), SEP-IRA, etc.). This is best illustrated by comparing the following three scenarios: [5]
Scenario #1 – A self-employed accountant makes $50,000 per year from her accounting business. Her maximum contribution is 25% of her post-contribution income ($10,000, which would be the same as saying 20% of her gross income), regardless of whether she uses a SEP-IRA, Keogh plan, or SIMPLE 401(k). Since there are less administrative costs, she would benefit most from choosing either the SEP-IRA or SIMPLE 401(k).
Scenario #2 – A family physician who owns his own practice makes $100,000 per year. His maximum contribution is 25% of his post-contribution income ($20,000, which would be the same as saying 20% of his gross income) whether he uses a Keogh plan or a SEP-IRA. The cost of maintaining the SEP-IRA is much less, so he would benefit more from that plan.
Scenario #3 – An entrepreneur who owns a small marketing firm makes $400,000 per year. She wishes to contribute as much as possible to a retirement plan in order to minimize her current taxes. She could contribute up to $11,500 for a SIMPLE IRA, $49,000 to a SEP-IRA, or up to $50,000 (contribution cap for 2012) in a Keogh plan. By choosing the Keogh plan over the SEP-IRA, she can contribute an additional $1,000 per year into her retirement plan.
In the United States, a 401(k) plan is an employer-sponsored, defined-contribution, personal pension (savings) account, as defined in subsection 401(k) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. Periodical employee contributions come directly out of their paychecks, and may be matched by the employer. This legal option is what makes 401(k) plans attractive to employees, and many employers offer this option to their (full-time) workers.
An individual retirement account (IRA) in the United States is a form of pension provided by many financial institutions that provides tax advantages for retirement savings. It is a trust that holds investment assets purchased with a taxpayer's earned income for the taxpayer's eventual benefit in old age. An individual retirement account is a type of individual retirement arrangement as described in IRS Publication 590, Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs). Other arrangements include employer-established benefit trusts and individual retirement annuities, by which a taxpayer purchases an annuity contract or an endowment contract from a life insurance company.
A Roth IRA is an individual retirement account (IRA) under United States law that is generally not taxed upon distribution, provided certain conditions are met. The principal difference between Roth IRAs and most other tax-advantaged retirement plans is that rather than granting a tax reduction for contributions to the retirement plan, qualified withdrawals from the Roth IRA plan are tax-free, and growth in the account is tax-free.
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In the United States, a 403(b) plan is a U.S. tax-advantaged retirement savings plan available for public education organizations, some non-profit employers, cooperative hospital service organizations, and self-employed ministers in the United States. It has tax treatment similar to a 401(k) plan, especially after the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001.
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A retirement plan is a financial arrangement designed to replace employment income upon retirement. These plans may be set up by employers, insurance companies, trade unions, the government, or other institutions. Congress has expressed a desire to encourage responsible retirement planning by granting favorable tax treatment to a wide variety of plans. Federal tax aspects of retirement plans in the United States are based on provisions of the Internal Revenue Code and the plans are regulated by the Department of Labor under the provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).
A Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees Individual Retirement Account, commonly known by the abbreviation "SIMPLE IRA", is a type of tax-deferred employer-provided retirement plan in the United States that allows employees to set aside money and invest it to grow for retirement. Specifically, it is a type of Individual Retirement Account (IRA) that is set up as an employer-provided plan. It is an employer sponsored plan, like better-known plans such as the 401(k) and 403(b), but offers simpler and less costly administration rules, as it is subject to ERISA and its associated regulations. Like a 401(k) plan, the SIMPLE IRA can be funded with pre-tax salary contributions, but those contributions are still subject to Social Security, Medicare, and Federal Unemployment Tax Act taxes. Contribution limits for SIMPLE plans are lower than for most other types of employer-provided retirement plans as compared to conventional defined contribution plans like Section 402(g), 401(k), 401(a), and 403(b) plans.
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